Mounting bracket assembly for air conditioning terminals

ABSTRACT

A BRACKET ASSEMBLY FOR MOUNTING A CEILING AIR CONDITIONING TERMINAL TO THE FRAME MEMBERS OF THE CEILING OF THE AREA BEING SERVED BY THE TERMINAL. THE BRACKET ASSEMBLY INCLUDES AT LEAST ONE MEMBER FOR ENGAGING THE CEILING TERMINAL AND A SECOND MEMBER CONNECTED TO THE FIRST MEMBER AND ADAPTED TO BE COOPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO A PORTION OF THE FRAME MEMBER. A PORTION OF THE BRACKET ASSEMBLY IS OPERABLE TO TRANSFER THE LOAD PROVIDED BY THE CEILING TERMINAL TO THE UPPER PORTION OF THE CEILING FRAME MEMBER, THE LOAD BEING EQUALLY DISTRIBUTED ABOUT THE MIDPOINT OF THE FRAME MEMBER SO THAT NO TURNING MOMENTS WILL BE CREATED THEREON.

Sept- 20, 1971 A. w. GUTHEIM 7 3,606,224

MOUNTING BRACKET ASSEMBLY FOR AIR CONDITIONING TERMINALS Filed Jan. 2, 1970 2 :4 Q r l6 l8 |7 l7 22 FIG. I 24 mvsmos.

26 26 AUGUST WILLIAM GUTHEIM ATTORNEY Stflts Pate 3,606,224 MOUNTING BRACKET ASSEMBLY FOR AIR CONDITIONING TERMINALS August William Gutheim, Chittenango, N.Y., assignor t Carrier Corporation, Syracuse, N.Y. Filed Jan. 2, 1970, Ser. No. 347 Int. Cl. F16!) 1/00 U.S. Cl 248-214 I 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A bracket assembly for mounting a ceiling air conditioning terminal to the frame members of the ceiling of the area being served by the terminal. The bracket assembly includes at least one member for engaging the ceiling terminal and a second member connected to the first member and adapted to be cooperatively connected to a portion of the fr gme member. A portion of the bracket assembly is operable to transfer the load provided by the ceiling terminal to the upper portion of the ceiling frame member, the load being equally distributed about the midpoint of the frame member so that no turning moments will be created thereon.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to ceiling air terminals employed in air conditioning systems and more particularly to a novel bracket assembly for mounting the terminals to the frame members of the ceiling of the area being served thereby.

The utilization of ceiling air conditioning terminals to provide conditioned air from a central source to a plurality of areas in an enclosure, such as ofiices in an oifice building, has become quite extensive. Generally, such areas have what is known as false ceilings. The false ceilings comprise a plurality of acoustical tiles suspended below the original area ceiling and mounted on a plurality of frame members generally shaped in the form of an inverted T.

The ceiling terminals are generally installed so the outlet therefrom is substantially flush with the lower surface of the false ceiling. Thus, it is apparent such room terminals must also be suspended in some manner from the original area ceiling.

It has become the practice to mount the terminals on the frame members of the false ceiling. However, such frame members are generally made of lightweight, relatively weak material that may readily be twisted or otherwise distorted by the heavy load of the ceiling terminal. When the ceiling terminal is mounted both horizontally and axially about such frames, the weight thereof is equally distributed among the four frames in contact therewith, so that twisting or other distortion of the frame members will not normally occur.

However, in installations where the ceiling terminal is of a narrower design and is only engaged by two members, the heavy load imposed thereon will cause such members to twist, or in severe cases, to suffer a complete failure.

The novel bracket assembly disclosed herein obviates the problems hereinbefore noted.

Patented Sept. 20, I971 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to ceiling air terminals, and more particularly, to a novel bracket assembly adaptable for mounting the terminals to the frame members of the ceiling. The bracket assembly includes at least one member for engaging the ceiling terminal and means connected to the first member and adaptable to be cooperatively connected to a portion of the frame member. A portion of the bracket assembly is operable to transfer the load provided by the ceiling terminal to the upper portion of the ceiling frame member, the load being equally distributed about the midpoint of the frame member so that no turning moments will be created thereon.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the means adaptable to be connected to the frame member includes two removable clips which are inserted into their respective positions after the remaining portion of said means has been placed into contact with the frame member. The removable clips simplify the installation of the bracket assembly.

Generally, the frame members employed are in the shape of an inverted T, whereby the main structural support thereof is the inverted longitudinal extending portion of the frame member. The bracket assembly transrnits the load imposed thereon by the ceiling terminal to the top surface of the longitudinal portion of the inverted T frame member.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 'FIG. 1 of the drawings is a sectional view in elevation of a portion of air conditioning equipment illustrating the ceiling air terminal to which the present invention relates, including the novel bracket assembly; and

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the novel bracket assembly.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawings, and in particular to FIGQ 1 thereof, there is illustrated a ceiling air terminal of the type to which the present invention relates. In referring to the drawings, like numerals shall refer to like parts.

The ceiling air terminal 10 includes a primary chamber 11 lined with a sound absorbing material 12 such as glass fiber blanket. The primary chamber is ordinarily open at both ends for connecting a series of terminals end to end to provide a complete air discharge system. The ceiling terminals are connected to a supply air duct 16, which is provided to supply conditioned air to ceiling air terminals located in rooms or areas in an enclosure. The conditioned air is treated in a central air conditioning apparatus not shown. An air supply distribution plate 13 having a plurality of collared openings 14 therein is provided to evenly distribute the primary air from supply chamber 11 into a distribution chamber 15 which is defined by the top and side walls of distribution plate 13.

The bottom of distribution chamber 15 includes opposed cut-oif plates 17 which are provided with a curved surface 18 for engagement by bladders 19' and 20 to form a damper. The curved surfaces smooth the flow of air through the damper to minimize the pressure drop therethrough and 'minimize noise generated within the terminal. Surface 18 is covered with felt 2.1 to further minimize noise. By varying the inflation of the bladders, the area of the openings between the bladders and the cut-off plates can be varied to regulate the quantity of air discharged into the area being conditioned.

The bladders 19 and 20 are adhesively mounted on a central partition comprised of opposed generally convex plates 22. The plates have a V-shaped recess therein so the bladders are completely recessed within the plates when deflated. This provides a large area between the active walls 23 of the bladders and the cut-off plates for maximum air flow therebetween. Further, the recessed bladder provides a smooth surface along plates 22 to minimize air turbulence.

The damper mechanism is disposed a substantial distance upstream from the terminal outlet to provide substantial space therebetween to absorb any noise generated by the damper mechanism. For maximum sound absorp tion, downwardly extending walls 24, which form air passages in conjunction with plates 22, are lined with a sound absorbing material such as glass fiber blankets 25. Outlet members 26, having outwardly flared lower portion 27, are afiixed as by welding to the walls 24. The ceiling terminal thus described is typical of the type of apparatus to which the present invention relates.

As noted hereinbefore, the ceiling air terminal is adapted for mounting to the frame members of a suspended false ceiling. However, due to its relatively narrow construction, the terminal will only engage two such frame members and may cause failure of the frame members by producing turning moments thereon. In FIG. 1 the members of the mounting bracket utilized for engaging the ceiling terminal are shown at reference numeral 40 and are adapted to engage the terminal by sliding into the end of the side of outlet members 26.

Referring now to FIG. 2, there is shown the novel bracket assembly engaging one ceiling frame member. It should be understood that the ceiling frame member does not form a part of the invention and may be of any suitable configuration. However, the standard configuration for such frame member is in the form of an inverted T including base portion 42 and upwardly extending portion 43.

The members 40 employed for engaging the outlet member 26 of the ceiling terminal are connected to a second member 41 of the bracket assembly by suitable joining means such as rivets 44. Member 41 is adapted to be slidably mounted over the elongated portion 43 of the ceiling frame member.

Member 41 includes upwardly extending sections 45 and 46 spaced at opposite ends of the member and adapted to enclose the upwardly extending portion 43. Sections 45 and 46 maintain upwardly extending portion 43 in a rigid manner and there is, therefore, a relatively small tolerance between the outer surface of portion 43 and the inner surface of sections 45 and 46.

To simplify the manner in which member 41 may be installed over upwardly extending portion 43, sections 45 and 46 include removable clip means 47. Removable clip means 47 are maintained out of contact with sections 45 and 46 and portion 43 while member 41 is being slidably positioned about portion 43. Once member 41 is properly positioned, clip means 47 are inserted, thereby maintaining upper portion 43 in a rigid manner as desired.

Equidistant from the midpoint of member 41 and extending through sections 45 and 46 are adjustable means 48 and 49. The adjustable means 48 and 49 are maintained out of engagement with the upper surface of upwardly extending portion 43 until the bracket assembly is placed in position thereover. Once the bracket assembly is properly placed in position, adjustable means are moved into contact with the upper surface of the frame member so that the bracket assembly is maintained in a level position thereover. Adjustable means 48 and 49 are the members of the bracket assembly that are in main contact with the ceiling frame member. Thus, they deliver the force imposed by the load placed on the mounting bracket assembly by the ceiling air terminal to the upper surface of the frame member as desired, since it is that portion of the frame member which is structurally the strongest part thereof.

As noted hereinbfore, the adjustable means are equidistant from the midpoint of member 41, and therefore they are operable to uniformly distribute the force so that no turning moments will be created about the frame member, thereby substantially eliminating the possibilities of the frame member being twisted or otherwise distorted.

The novel mounting bracket assembly herein disclosed is relatively inexpensive to manufacture and provides a simple means for uniformly distributing the load imposed by the ceiling air terminal to the ceilng frame members from whch it is to be suspended in the area being served thereby.

While I have described a preferred embodiment of my invention, it is understood that it is not so limited thereto since it may be otherwise embodied within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. A bracket assembly for mounting an air conditioning terminal adapted for installation in a ceiling of an area being served by the terminal, said ceiling having a plurality of frame members, each of which having a portion having opposed surfaces, said air conditioning terminal including a portion thereof to be engaged by a portion of said mounting bracket assembly comprising:

(A) first means for engaging and supporting said portion of said terminal;

(B) second means associated with said first means and adaptable to be positioned in a cooperating manner with one of said ceiling frame members, said second means holding said portion of said frame member in a rigid manner by having substantially intimate contact with said opposed surfaces thereof; and

(C) means for transferring the load placed on said first means by said air conditioning terminal to the upper portion of said ceiling frame member, said load transferring means being further operable to equally distribute the load placed on said upper portion of said ceiling frame member about the midpoint thereof so that no turning moments are created.

2. In combination with an air conditioning terminal adapted for installation in a ceiling of an area being served by the termnal, said ceiling having a plurality of frame members each of which having a portion having opposed surfaces, the improvement which comprises a bracket assembly for mounting said air conditioning terminal to one of said frame members comprising:

(A) first means for engaging and supporting a portion of said terminal;

(B) second means connected to said first means and adaptable to be slidably positioned over said portion of said frame member, said second means holding said portion of said frame member in a rigid manner by having substantially intimate contact with the opposed surfaces thereof; and

(C) means for transferring the load placed on said first means by said terminal to the upper portion of said ceiling frame mebber, said load transferring means being further operable to equally distribute the load placed on said upper portion of said ceiling frame member about the midpoint thereof so that no turning moments are created.

3. The combination in accordance with claim 2 wherein said load transferring means includes a plurality of adjustable means that can be moved into and out of engaging relationship with the upper portion of said ceiling frame member.

4. The combination in accordance with claim 3 wherein said second means includes a plurality of removable clip means.

5. The combination in accordance with claim 2 wherein said second means includes a plurality of removable clip means.

6. The combination in accordance with claim 1 wherein said load transferring means includes a plurality of adjustable means that can be moved into and out of engaging relationship with the upper portion of said ceiling frame member.

7. The combination in accordance with claim 6 wherein said second means includes a plurality of removable clip means.

8. The combination in accordance with claim 1 wherein said second means includes a plurality of removable clip means.

References Cited V UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,965,339 12/1960 Denton 248224VX 3,121,259 2/1964 Versen 52484X J. FRANKLIN FOSS, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 52-39; 287-48935 

